​My summer reading list was long and filled with wonderful resources. One reading project included catching up on all the wonderful articles in ASCD’s Educational Leadership journal and their online supplements. One of my favorites was an article called “Questioning and Vocabulary Supports that Inspire Language-Rich Mathematics,” by Sue O’Connell. O’Connell shared several great questions, but I particularly liked the following:

What keeps happening? Why?

What patterns do you see?

What is the rule?

Will it always work? Explain.

Recognizing patterns is considered an essential ability for higher-level thinking. To encourage this, you might try printing out Pattern Searches, laminate a few and have them ready to hand out when you want to challenge students. What's your favorite question to get students thinking at higher levels?​O’Connell, S. 2018. “Questioning and vocabulary supports that inspire language-rich mathematics” in Educational Leadership, July 26, (13) 22.

With the beginning of a new school year right around the corner, co-teachers across the country are talking to their partners and setting norms for their teamwork. One key discussion item, often overlooked, is the classroom environment. What works for a solo classroom may not work as well for a co-taught class. While you probably don’t need an interior decorator, you will want to talk through the following questions:

Does our room communicate parity to the students? Do both teachers have desks of equal size? If there isn’t space for two desks, do both teachers have equal access to the desk and necessary materials?

Are both teachers’ names listed at the door, on the board and on the syllabus? How are we communicating to our students that this is “our” classroom?

Is the room set up in such a way that two groups can be taught simultaneously with both teachers having access to a whiteboard? Do we need to dedicate a board in the back of the room for small group instruction rather than decorations? Do we need to ask for an additional whiteboard?

Are student desks arranged to allow for both teachers to move easily through the room? Are there multiple ways to quickly pull chairs for small group instruction at stations?

Do we have any dividers that can be used to dampen sound or distractions during small group work?

With a few minutes of intentional discussion, your co-teaching space can help to support student success all year long.